Happy Birthday, Honey
by HeavyDrugsOrGroupHugs
Summary: The girls take Angel out shopping for her birthday, but her day is nearly ruined by prejudice. Is it enough to ruin Angel's spunk?


**I don't own this amazing musical. I rent ;)**

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"Happy Birthday, Angel!" the girls cried as their friend opened her apartment door. "Oooh!" squealed Angel, throwing her arms around Maureen, Joanne and Mimi.

"We have something special planned for you today, baby," gushed Maureen. "Come on, let's go!"

"You're not taking my Angel away from me today, are you?" asked Collins, coming up behind his lover.

"Oh hush," said Joanne. "When we're done with her, you'll thank us."

"Where are we going?" asked Angel, excitement rising in her cheeks.

"Shopping spree, courtesy of us!" said Mimi. Angel clapped her hands happily and let her friends pull her out the door, blowing a kiss to Collins as she went.

They ended us in a department store, full of fun and stylish clothes at prices that agreed with the pay checks of Mimi, Maureen and Joanne.

"Where to first?" Mimi turned to Angel happily. "You get what you want today. It's your big day." Angel smiled at her friends, then announced, "Shoes!"

The shoe section drew the girls in. Angel began examining a pair of platform boots with a critical eye as Mimi and Maureen mocked Joanne with a pair of granny-style flats. Then, a young saleswoman came up behind them.

"Can I help you ladies with anything?" she smiled.

"Actually, the only one we're shopping for is Angel here," said Mimi as Angel turned away from the rack towards her friends. As the saleswoman looked at Angel, her friendly smile flickered, then sunk into a frown.

"Well, if there's nothing I can help you with…" she turned and marched over to the cash. The girls could see her speaking quickly to a co-worker, now and then glancing in their direction.

"Well that was rude," frowned Joanne. Angel said nothing, but turned back to the shoes with a strange look on her face. The others stood quietly, not quite sure how to react.

Suddenly, another woman in a powder blue appeared from behind them. "Excuse me," she said, "but I'm going to have to ask you…ladies to leave."

Their mouths hung open in shock for a moment, then Maureen stepped in. "We haven't done anything wrong. You can't just kick us out!"

"I'm afraid we don't serve…certain types of people here," the woman replied, staring at Angel's clothes, makeup and jewellery.

"You - You BIGOTED, PREJUDICED WOMAN!" exclaimed Maureen angrily.

"Honey, it's ok, really," muttered Angel in her ear.

"No it isn't," retorted Maureen dramatically. "We cannot let this _evil _woman push us out because of her unnatural, unfair hatred!" she glared at the woman.

"Miss, you need to leave the store right now or I will be forced to call security."

"Come on," whispered Angel, and the others turned away, with one final finger gesture from the drama queen.

Outside, Joanne lead the girls to a small café where they ate lunch without incident. Still, throughout the meal, Angel sat quietly, nodding along with the conversation though her thoughts were still a few blocks away.

"Angel, baby, what can we do to make this day better foe you?" asked Mimi, her brown eyes full of sadness upon seeing her close friend in such pain.

"Girls," said Angel slowly, "I think I have to go back there and stand up for myself. I need to say something to her."

Mimi and Joanne exchanged looks of discomfort, but Maureen grinned with excitement. "Yeah, baby. You show that old hag!"

A few minutes later, flanked by her friends, Angel walked up to the checkout counter in the shoe section as the woman who had kicked them out glared with the ferocity of Hell. The woman opened her mouth to speak, but Angel held up one blue fingernail, then began to speak.

"Honey, I may be not be the right kind of lady in your mind, but in my heart, I'm just as much a woman as you are. And whatever you want to think about me shouldn't come out in public, because, let's face it, honey, prejudice is not pretty on you. I'm doing ok for myself. I've got my friends and my boyfriend. They're my family and they're the ones that matter. But there's this thing called tolerance, and you should remember it for next time, dear." Angel smirked at the woman, who had shock written across her face, then Angel turned and began to walk out of the store.

Suddenly, she faced the woman one last time. "Oh, and honey? Powder blue is not you're colour."


End file.
